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Is taking Fletcher to the beach on a hot day a good idea?

My whole family is going on a beach vacation next week. The Outer Banks of NC, a town called Duck. Well, dogs are allowed on the beach everyday all day even unleashed (which I wouldn't do- he's not mastered recall and with his cavalier ADHD, no way) Fletcher is coming but I wanted to take him to the beach with us daily. However, its going to be a hot week, we usually get down to the beach by 930 am- and return to the beach house around 1230 or 1 pm for lunch a rest and then just hang out by the pool. Fletcher loves the pool, but I'm worried about having him at the beach when its going to be too hot unless your wet to go. We bring plenty of umbrellas, I usually have one for me and one just for the kids to play under, and sunscreen applied a lot. I know to bring fresh cold water for Fletcher but do you think its smart??? Should I plan to take him down for a shorter time? I don't want to do anything to harm my baby. We are taking his crate for sure, but I don't leave him crated for this long normally....its only a 5 minute walk from the house to the beach but it the heat it feels like 5 miles if I should leave him for a bit then bring him down for a shorter period of time, I'm going to have the mentally prepare myself for the trek!!!! Yes, on these vacations I really am that lazy. Any suggestions would be great.

He should be OK as long as he has shade, fresh water (fresh but not cold), and you watch him to make sure he doesn't overheat. If you think he's too hot, take him away from the sun and sand. Be prepared with a first aid kit with a diarrhea remedy. Dogs often drink the salt water until they realize it's yucky, and diarrhea results. Do you have a life jacket for him? If not, just keep a close eye on him near the water. He probably won't want to go too far in because of the waves, but you never know.

My two are grounded if the temperature goes over 20 degrees. They get walked early morning or late evening and kept indoors in the shade for the rest of the day (out in the garden for wees, of course). Most Cavaliers will develop heart murmurs at some stage, and walking in hot weather is one of the best ways of encouraging them! Because dogs don't perspire, they have to work hard to keep their body temperature down by panting, which means heart and lungs working overtime. The hottest time of day is between noon and 3pm, so I would take Fletcher back to the house then. It helps to keep the house cool if you open doors and windows early in the morning when the air is cool and as soon as the sun starts to come through the windows, draw the blinds and close the windows (if you think about it, traditional houses in hot climates don't have huge windows - you want to keep the sun OUT). Being in the US, you may have air conditioning, but keeping the sun out of the house is a cheaper option! And, as already said, check out the symptoms of heat exhaustion, although avoidance is better than treatment. Another thing that can help is that some Cavaliers have quite short fur on their noses and a dab of sun block will prevent burning.

As you've probably gathered, I am paranoid about sun and heat! Partly because I have fair skin that burns easily myself, but also because one of my Cavaliers went almost overnight from a grade 5 heart murmur to congestive heart failure when we had a week of very hot weather with terrible air quality - she went out early and late for very short walks but still couldn't cope with the general heat and stuffiness. Let Fletcher enjoy the beach but just be extra careful.